A Walk in the Forest
by Miss Collins
Summary: Bella decides to take a walk in the forest to be alone with her thoughts. However, she isn't as alone as she assumes. one shot.


**This is my first time writing for Twilight, so I guess we'll see how it goes. I hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: I only own my writing, not Twilight.**

Why does nothing ever make sense anymore? Why can't anything just be straightforward? I'd been thinking and rethinking everything for the past few weeks, enough to drive anyone insane. But I just couldn't figure him out. For some reason, Edward was one mystery I couldn't solve.

I sat on my bed as I tried unsuccessfully to work these things out once again. Charlie was still at work, so I was alone. Finally, I decided that maybe some fresh air would help. Luckily, today happened to be one of the few days when it hadn't rained. The sun was even breaking through the clouds overhead.

So I decided to go out. I just wanted to sit on the porch and maybe read or something. Once I was outside, though, a new idea struck me. I'd never really had the urge to trek through the forest before. After all, I wasn't exactly graceful. Yet somehow, that's all I could think about now.

I just had to be careful. Charlie had warned me about the woods, and the combination of dangerous animals and my usual balance issues made the place particularly treacherous. Still, I decided to go.

Carefully, I made my way to the edge of the forest and began walking. This wasn't so bad, really. I mean, sure I had to constantly watch the ground for the twisting roots that tried to trip me, but other than that, it was pretty calming. Just as I had suspected, it was a great place to think. Now I let my mind wander back to Edward, back to his perfect face and his strange but beautiful eyes and his seemingly superhuman strength and speed that had no doubt saved my life. There was something different about him, I knew it. I just… couldn't put my finger on it. I continued to think about these things as I walked on.

I was so caught up in my thoughts that I hadn't noticed that the light had been slowly creeping away. All at once, I found myself in the middle of the forest at night. Maybe it would have been easy to find my way back during the day, but now that it was night, my chances were nearly impossible. No doubt I would trip and break something before I took ten steps.

Just as I was starting to think of my next move, I heard a noise. A stick broke. This wouldn't have bothered me so much if it hadn't been a _freaking huge_ stick that broke. _Okay, okay, just calm down, _I told myself. _It's probably nothing._ When the noise came again, though, it was harder to ignore. Now I was screwed.

From the shadows I could practically feel that something was watching me, so I stood as still as possible, trying to control my breathing. I silently hoped that it was a human, because at least then I had a chance of fighting them off. I had never been so happy that I'd taken those self-defense courses. It had seemed somewhat pointless at the time, but now it could really come in handy. However, if I was being stalked by an animal, well, like I said, I was screwed.

I looked around me frantically, trying to find my stalker. Two gleaming eyes peered out at me from behind a nearby bush. The eyes were just far enough off the ground that I could tell that this was either a slightly crouching person or a very big animal. "Hello?" I called.

At this, a mountain lion emerged. Yeah, very big animal didn't exactly cover it. Very, _very,_ big animal might have been a bit more accurate. I began to back away slowly, but something stopped me. Of course I was backed against a tree. Just my luck.

The lion crouched, tensing itself to pounce. I knew that any sudden movements would be enough to set it off. So I tried to move sideways now, as slowly as I could, but something caught my leg and sent me crashing to the ground, extremely vulnerable.

This was just the kind of sudden movement necessary to make the lion spring, and I braced myself for what would follow. But something knocked the lion out of the air even as it launched itself at me. I heard a snap, and it was motionless.

A man stood over it. He turned towards me, and I could see that it was…

_Edward._

But how could he be here? How did he know that _I _was here, that I needed help? Once again, he had saved my life.

He rushed to my side now, helping me up. "Are you alright?" he asked urgently. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine," I assured him over and over again. He must not have believed me though, because he continued to ask me how I was and if I needed medical help. "Really, Edward, I'm fine."

Finally, he stopped all his questioning and looked me in the eye with his intense gaze. His eyes were gold now, the brightest I'd ever seen them. "Why did you come out here at night? You know it's dangerous."

"I could ask you the same question," I countered.

"It doesn't matter _why_ I'm here. What matters is that I saved your life." He said this last part with a sort of… tenderness that wasn't present in his normal speech. It was as if he couldn't bear the thought of what would have happened if he hadn't saved my life.

Everything I'd been turning over in my head before now came to a standstill. I had to ask him. It was now or never. "What are you?" I asked, unable to find a better way to word it. Damn, I was eloquent.

His eyes softened, and the look he gave me was one of sadness, almost pain. His hand reached up to cup my cheek, stroking it softly with his thumb. "Bella…" he began, but then he hesitated. "I… I can't. I'm sorry."

"But what does that mean?" I asked. "Why can't you tell me?"

His mouth moved soundlessly as he searched for the right words. He closed his eyes; it was evident that it pained him to keep this from me. When he opened them again, he said, "Please, just trust me. You have to trust me. This is for your own good."

Maybe it was the look in his eyes when he'd said "trust me." Maybe it was the fact that his hand still caressed my face. But whatever the reason, I gave in. "Okay," I sighed. Once again, I was dazzled by my own eloquence. In that moment, that was all I could say.

Edward gave me that crooked smile that always made my heart melt. "Thank you." Finally, he lowered his hand and said, "You should probably go home now. I think this was enough fresh air for one night."

"Oh. Right. About that…. Would you mind coming with me? I'm not the best at walking, especially not at night."

"No problem," he laughed. I began to walk, but before I'd taken two steps, he pulled me into his arms like a groom carrying his bride. I gave him a look that said _that really isn't necessary, even though I kind of like it, _but he just shrugged. "It'll be quicker this way, trust me."

And I did trust him, even if he didn't always tell me the truth, because I knew that no matter how mysterious and aloof he acted, I had caught his eye. I had no idea how or why, but somehow, this magnificent being was interested in me, and I knew that he would do anything to protect me.

So now, safe in his admittedly cold embrace, I laid my head on his chest and allowed myself to drift asleep, lulled by the rhythm of his even steps.

**Let me know what you think?**


End file.
